The game didn’t start the way Tampa Bay had hoped but with the way it closed out, they ended up very happy and injected some doubt into the minds of the Boston Bruins. After getting down 3-0 after the first period, the Lightning rallied back to tie the game 3-3 after two periods and went on to win 5-3 to tie the Eastern Conference finals at 2-2.

As good as the Bruins looked in the first period they looked as bad and overrun in the final two periods of the game. Patrice Bergeron led the charge in the first scoring two goals while Michael Ryder added a third. Getting out that big that early forced Dwayne Roloson out of the game after making just six saves. Mike Smith would replace him and that move would change the scope of the game.

Smith would play the rest of the way and shutout the Bruins stopping 21 shots through the rest of the game. That kind of play helped give the Lightning the opportunity to get back into the game and in the second period it would be Teddy Purcell would would lead the charge scoring Tampa’s first two goals of the game. Sean Bergenheim would add his ninth goal of the playoffs to tie the game at 3-3.

In the third, Tampa Bay would continue to press the issue and for Boston back into their zone. There it would be Simon Gagne breaking the tie beating Tim Thomas through the five hole to give Tampa a 4-3 lead. From there, Tampa would burrow in and hang on to the lead getting an empty net goal from Martin St. Louis to seal the deal.

For Boston it’s yet another stunning playoff collapse. Boston dominated the first twenty minutes of the game taking advantage of brutal Tampa Bay mistakes and converting them for goals to beat a rattled and tired looking Dwayne Roloson. The Bruins let up after getting up 3-0 in the game and took it all for granted in how they reacted to the pressure Tampa Bay poured on in the final 40 minutes. Boston will again have to learn from this but now the series is a best of three the rest of the way. On the upside for Boston they’ll have up to two more games at home. The downside is they could’ve been heading home for Game 5 with a chance to end the series. Now they’ll be back to fighting for the series and in desperate need to win Game 5.

Tampa Bay scrapping back and winning this game the way they did falls in line with how they’ve played all playoffs. They didn’t give in and once they got things rolling in the second period, they had Boston back on their heels unable to handle the pressure. Smith’s job in relief was huge as he was able to stabilize things after they were spiraling out of control fast in the first period. Smith’s save late in the third period was a prime example of how big he was for the Lightning.

The New Jersey Devils have been incredibly difficult to beat at home. Lately, the St. Louis Blues have been on a roll just about anywhere.

On Friday night, the Blues were the hotter team, handing the Devils their first home loss in regulation in 2016-17. And it wasn’t particularly close, with St. Louis winning 4-1.

It’s a convenient time to note that the Blues rank among the hottest teams in the NHL. Most recently, they’re 5-1-1 in their last seven games, but they’ve been especially impressive since they flirted with .500 at 7-6-3. Beginning with a 4-1 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Nov. 15, the Blues are on a 8-2-1 tear.

That’s impressive stuff.

This 4-1 win was quite the showcase for Robby Fabbri and Vladimir Tarasenko, in particular. Tarasenko collected three assists while Fabbri scored two goals on Friday night. His second goal was particularly slick:

The Blues are right in saying that this was a pretty fitting opportunity to drop a “Holy Jumpin.”

Minnesota Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk has been the most difficult goalies to score against this season. Leave it to a high-level player like Leon Draisaitl to make it look this, well, “easy.”

Draisaitl scored his 13th goal of 2016-17 by capping this pretty give-and-go play with Benoit Pouliot. You can see the frustration from Dubnyk at the end of the tally, as if he was saying “How was I supposed to stop that?” (though probably with more colorful language).

Draisaitl came into Friday with five goals and three assists in his last five games, so he’s been almost unstoppable lately.